I had quinoa.
I had tomatoes.
I had scallions.
The yard is full of herbs and tomatoes.
But there seemed to be something missing...
I looked around the kitchen and found a bag of dried black beans. So instead of telling myself that it was too late to wait for an overnight soak, I just decided to do the quick-soak thing... and you know what... It's not perfect, but it works just fine:
Boil the beans for two minutes, let them sit for an hour, then drain, rinse, and refill with clean water and cook until tender... about 1 hour.
I combined the quinoa - about 1 1/2 cups - with 2 cups of the cooled beans, a bunch of minced scallions, some chopped tomatoes, chopped parsley, thyme, and basil. Then I dressed the salad with a basic mustard vinaigrette.
This was soooo satisfying... A salad, yes... but so much more.
Oh, and by the way: ignore everything you've been told about not salting dried beans before they're cooked! Salt the soaking water, salt the cooking water. Trust me on this one... the beans taste so much better! It's a little like brining a chicken...